NCCE sensitises citizens to children’s rights

Kadjebi District Office of the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE), in partnership with the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), has embarked on a programme to educate the citizens on children’s rights, especially that of the disabled child.

The programme, organised with support from the Nkwanta Cluster Office of World Vision Ghana, is aimed at reducing violence against children, especially the disabled child, and will be implemented in 17 communities within the district.

Protection of child’s rights

At one of such programmes at Dodo-Amanfrom, the Kadjebi District Director of the NCCE, Mr Daniel Agbesi Latsu, called on the citizenry to help protect the child from neglect, violence, abuse and discrimination on the grounds of race, age, religion, disability, health status, custom, ethnic origin, rural or urban background, birth or socio-economic status because he or she was a child.

According to him, no person should subject a child to torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, including any cultural practice which dehumanises or is injurious to the physical and mental well-being of the child, because the act contravened subsection 1 of section 13 of the Children’s Act, 1998 (Act 560).

“The disabled child has a right to special care, education and training where possible to boost his/her utmost potential and be self-reliant,” he said.

Mr Latsu also advised the able-bodied persons to respect the rights of the disabled child and desist from calling them derogatory names, since it was immoral and against the Persons With Disability (PWDs) Act, 2006 (Act 715).

He added that the child also had the right to an opinion, to be listened to and to participate in decisions which affected his or her well-being, stressing that the opinion of the child should be dully considered, in accordance with the age and maturity of the child.

Mr Latsu said: “anyone who contravened a provision of Sub-Part I of the Children’s Act, 1998 (Act 560) commits an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding GH¢?500.00 or to imprisonment not exceeding one year, or to both.”

Conducive environment

An Assistant Civic Education Officer of the NCCE, Mr Gabriel Kwame Dzanka, appealed to Ghanaians to create a safe and conducive environment for the child to grow up.

Mr Dzanka said the child had the right to life, dignity, respect, leisure, liberty, health, education and shelter from his or her parents.

He also called on the citizenry to protect the child against exposure to physical and moral hazards, since Article 28 (2) of the 1992 Constitution says, “every child has the right to be protected from engaging in works that constitute a threat to his/her health, education or development.”

The Assembly Member for the Kpalime-Kofe/Anani-Kura Electoral Area, Madam Mary Kpapu Fuseini, thanked the management and staff of the NCCE for the programme which she said had enlightened them on the rights of the child.

Needed facilities

She appealed to the Kadjebi District Assembly and benevolent organisations to help construct a three-unit classroom block with other facilities for the Kpalime-Kofe Day Care School whose structure was in a deplorable state.

She also appealed for the drilling of boreholes for the Kpando-Kofe and Anani-Kura communities.

Similar programmes were held at Dodo-Fie, Dodo-Amanfrom, Dodo-Dompa, Dodo-Pepesu, Dodo-Tamale, Dzindziso, Mempeasem and Poase-Cement.